Essentials of Cross-Cultural Counseling

Lawrence H. Gerstein earned a B.B.A. in public administration and a Ph.D. in counseling and social psychology. He is a Ball State University George and Frances Ball Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Director of the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies, Fulbright Scholar, and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association. Professor Gerstein is a Co-Editor of the Journal for Social Action in Counseling and Psychology and an Editorial Board Member for the Journal of Counseling Psychology. He has published 100+ scholarly articles and three books including the International Handbook of Cross-Cultural Counseling and the Handbook for Social Justice in Counseling Psychology. He is known for his research on cross-cultural methodology, nonviolence, social justice, emotions, and sports for youth development. Professor Gerstein has received 2+ million dollars in funding including four U.S. State Department grants and one U.S. Institute of Peace grant. He has performed conflict prevention and resolution work and/or research with adults, children, and youth in the U.S.A, Jordan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, China, Hong Kong, Korea, Indonesia, Israel, Taiwan, and Burma. He also has trained Iraqi young leaders in social entrepreneurship.  P. Paul Heppner is a professor of the Department of Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology at the University of Missouri. He is cofounder of the MU Center for Multicultural Research, Training and Consultation and was the inaugural co-chair of the International Section of counseling Psychology. He has served on several national and international editorial boards and as editor of The Counseling Psychologist. Stefania Ægisdóttir is an associate professor in the Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services at Ball State University. She has written about cross-cultural research methods, attitudes and expectations about counseling, clinical judgment, and international and cross-cultural issues and competencies in counseling research and training. She recently completed a three-year grant from the Icelandic Research Fund to study psychological help-seeking patterns of Icelanders. Seung-Ming Alvin Leung is a professor in and chairperson of the Department of Educational Psychology at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. His major areas of interest include career development and assessment; cross-cultural, multicultural, and international issues in counseling; and counseling in educational settings. He is currently the editor of Asian Journal of Counselling and previously served as associate editor of The Counseling Psychologist. Kathryn L. Norsworthy is a professor at Rollins College and a licensed psychologist and nationally certified counselor. She currently serves as chair of the international committee of the Division of Trauma Psychology of the American Psychological Association. She is author and coauthor of numerous articles and book chapters on her international social justice work and cross-national partnerships and has been engaged in activist research and practice projects focusing on trauma, feminist counseling, cross-national collaboration, and peace-building in Thailand, Cambodia, and northern India since 1997.

• Acknowledgments1. Cross-Cultural Counseling - Lawrence H. Gerstein, P. Paul Heppner, Stefania Aegisdottir,Seung-Ming Alvin Leung, and Kathryn L. Norsworthy2. The Intersection of Multicultural and Cross-National Movements in the United States - P. Paul Heppner, Stefania Aegisdottir, Seung-Ming Alvin Leung, Changming Duan, Janet E. Helms, Lawrence H. Gerstein, and Paul B. Pedersen3. The Counseling Profession In and Outside the United States - Lawrence H. Gerstein, P. Paul Heppner, Rex Stockton,Frederick T. L. Leong, and Stefania Aegisdottir4. Exportation of U.S.-Based Models of Counseling and Counseling Psychology - Kathryn L. Norsworthy, P. Paul Heppner, Stefania Aegisdottir, Lawrence H. Gerstein, and Paul B. Pedersen5. Theoretical and Methodological Issues When Studying Culture - Stefania Aegisdottir, Lawrence H. Gerstein, Seung-Ming Alvin Leung, Kwong-Liem Karl Kwan, and Walter J. Lonner6. Internationalization of the Counseling Profession - Seung-Ming Alvin Leung, Thomas Clawson, Kathryn L.Norsworthy, Antonio Tena, Andreea Szilagyi, and Jennifer Rogers7. Crossing Borders in Collaboration - Kathryn L. Norsworthy, Seung-Ming Alvin Leung, P. Paul Heppner, and Li-fei Wang8. Cross-Cultural Collaboration - Li-fei Wang and P. Paul Heppner9. A Global Vision for the Future of Cross-Cultural Counseling - Lawrence H. Gerstein, P. Paul Heppner, Stefania Aegisdottir, Seung-Ming Alvin Leung, and Kathryn L. NorsworthyIndex

The authors have put together a must-read book for all counselors and counseling psychologists- not just those who might consider doing cross-cultural counseling. All practitioners and researchers need to have a fundamental understanding of the cultural context of their work, and this book provides the foundation for that knowledge. The chapters address practitioners wanting to work in countries outside the US, researchers wanting the background to do cross-national work, and also helps to ground US based counseling within a cultural context. Clearly, counseling in the United States in response to a particular set of contexts, and the authors thoughtfully help readers to understand that context. I applaud the authors for their careful analysis of the issues and will require this book for my students.